Doing my sums...

Marguerite

Active Member
I've just been doing some calculating. Having seen the doctor yesterday and regretting not being able to tell her exactly how many calories or Kj I'm eating, I finally sat down tonight to work it out. Not easy, since I make my own muesli because I had to calculate the Kj count for an entire batch, than work out how many serves in a batch. Then there's my home cooking - I make a lot of osso bucco at the moment (it's cheap to buy the cut of beef lately) but since I follow a traditional recipe (which uses a lot of celery & carrot) I was able to search the net for some estimates of the Kj count of this dish. It's usually served with risotto alla milanese, but we've never been able to do that because it would be just too rich and definitely too greasy for me.

So I've worked out - my morning muesli is about 1000 Kj a serve, osso bucco plus brown rice is about 1300.

Looking at it all, I've worked out that my total daily intake is about 4,200 Kj which translates to almost exactly 1000 calories. That's allowing for four giant cups of Greek iced coffee at 100 Kj a serve, and one serve of frozen fruit juice for dessert (400 Kj or just under 100 calories).

I did the calculations in the diet book, which told me that I'm burning up about 6700 Kj a day if I just do nothing. The more I can exercise, the more I can burn. The guideline is that I need to cut back this number by 2-4000 Kj, in order to lose half to one kilo a week.

Now, that 1000 calories a day is high in protein, very low in fat & sugar, and all carbs are high-fibre so although they are listed as a certain Kj rating, you actually burn less than this in your body. If you eat half a cup of cooked white rice, your body can access more of it than if you ate half a cup of cooked brown rice; and yet the brown scores higher on the Kj count.

I was able to use the doctor's scales to discover that I'm losing about 5 Kg a month. This is really good, better than I thought. So functionally, I'm either burning more calories than I thought or my body is getting fewer calories than the 1000 I calculated.

All I need to do now is keep going, and stay out of hospital. The urologist was very firm - one more infection and it's into hospital for three days on an antibiotic drip, with a catheterised bladder being constantly flushed with antiseptic. I wouldn't be able to exercise and I would also have to eat what the hospital dieticians consider to be a "light diet". Last time I was in hospital on a "light diet" (and able to get out of bed and exercise at least a little) I gained weight.

I have a little under four months to go and then the diet pills will be stopped.

I started at 97 Kg. I was 91 Kg by the doctor's scales last month; her scales say I'm 86 Kg now. She said this rate of loss is just right. I know I couldn't do this for so long, without these pills; the weight loss would be tapering off by now.

I'm still rummaging through my wardrobe looking for smaller clothes. This means people are seeing me in what they think are new clothes, it's been so long since I've worn some of these items.

So who knows where things will go from here?

Marg
 
Marg,

You are doing great!!! You are a very strong person and I'm impressed by how far you've come.

You deserve to reward yourself with a new outfit for the wedding!!! WFEN
 

dreamer

New Member
I am so happy YAY! sounds like you are doing great!- better than me!! I take in approx between 600-1000 calories/day- my oats, my salad garlic and vinegar for dressing) and my peice of fish and dried bean or brown rice. fat free milk before bed. I have now been stuck at same weight for 3? weeks? UG! My activity has increased a lot recently due to yard work, renovating, pulling out some bushes etc.....and I still go up and down my stairs (so I have the hand rail for balance) multiple times in a row a few times a day.....
My personal good news is my blood sugar and blood pressure look consistantly very good, now.

I sure do not blame you for not wanting to land in hospital on IV with catheter. YUK!
I am so happy for you! Thats great!
YAY!
 

LittleDudesMom

Well-Known Member
Marg, I think you are doing great! Rumaging for clothes that fit is the great thing, but getting healthy and helping that liver is the bomb!

Dreamer, great about the blood sugar levels and blood pressure numbers. It's all about being healthy. Weight is just a component of overall health.

Sharon
 

Marguerite

Active Member
Just a comment about weight apparently not changing - check your bathroom scales. I've finally worked out not to necessarily believe the digital scales, because they can be upset by all sorts of variables including how you step on them. The older scales which read on a dial are more accurate. Double-check the zero to make sure.

Another trick which husband set up - find some weights. In our case because we're metric, we filled a large plastic bottle with exactly 2 litres of water (measured with a jug). By definition, 2 litres weighs exactly 2 Kilograms. So we weigh ourselves just as we are, and then immediately, this time holding the bottle of water. It should show us as 2 Kg heavier, but it doesn't (with our scales). Try measuring out 30.7 fluid ounces of water. That weighs 2 pounds. Or double it and measure out 61.4 fluid ounces, for a 4 pound weight. Then try weighing yourself, with and without the water bottle. If the weight with the bottle is 4 pounds heavier than the weight without the bottle, then your scales are behaving themselves.

So I use my scales as an estimate only, and if it shows no change or a gain, I don't let it upset me.

Another trick - weigh yourself three times. Average out the readings.

But best of all - find someone with a dial you can read, instead of a digital output. Try to weigh yourself at the same time each day, wearing the same things (or close enough). I weigh myself in the mornings wearing just underwear, for the most repeatable readings.

And don't get disheartened.

Marg
 
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